This invention concerns a behind-the-ear hearing aid according to the preamble to claim 1, and a surface-mounted module for this type of hearing aid according to claim 7.
Behind-the-ear hearing aids with a hook-shaped curved body, basically along a likewise curved axis, with acoustic/electric transducers, electric/acoustic transducers and electronic units built in, are known. One end of them, usually the tapering end, forms the body of the acoustic output to the ear.
Such behind-the-ear hearing aids have a storage battery or battery compartment.
Usually, a round cell battery is used on these types of hearing aids, hence a basically cylindrical battery or storage battery body, so that its cylinder axis is positioned across the axis of the body mentioned. The hearing aid housing has a hinged cover for this, with holders for the cylindrical body, in such a way that its cylindrical axis runs parallel to the swivel axis of the hinged cover. This arrangement has disadvantages in various ways:
Because of the fact that the cylindrical body of the battery or storage battery runs transverse to the longitudinal axis of the hook-shaped curved hearing-aid body, a relatively large amount of space in the hearing aid is wasted by the battery. There are also dividing lines running between the hinged cover and the housing of the hearing aid, basically along generating lines of the hook-shaped curved hearing-aid body, and at least some of them, when the hearing aid is worn, lie directly on the skin of the wearer and form a relatively long, critical point, through which sweat and exhalation vapor, etc. can penetrate inside the battery compartment.
The purpose of this invention is to remove these disadvantages. For this purpose, the behind-the-ear hearing aid in the invention is characterized by the features in Claim 1. In it, the battery compartment is at the end of the body opposite the acoustic output, and the space inside it is designed for a cylindrical storage battery or battery body, so that its cylindrical axis is basically coaxial to the longitudinal axis of the device. With the basically cylindrical cross sectionxe2x80x94especially the inside cross sectionxe2x80x94of the body of the device, optimally less structural volume is needed for the battery or storage battery body, since it can be inserted coaxially to the axis of the tube of the device, practically flush with the housing wall.
In one preferred form of embodiment, the compartment mentioned, preferably in turn coaxial to the longitudinal axis of the device, has a first, preferably spring, preferably center tap contact and in the area of the compartment wall, at least one second one.
Although a battery placed in the compartment for the tap needs only two tap contacts, it can, if necessary, be advantageous to provide more than two electrical contacts in the compartment mentioned, for the other preferred form of embodiment of the hearing aid in the invention. For it, instead of a battery or storage battery in the compartment mentioned on the body of the device, the plug part of a surface-mounted or add-on module can be inserted and electrical contact made with the contacts mentioned, at least two or, if necessary more. On the surface-mounted module, which now acts on the actual battery compartment on the body of the device, there is, on the end opposite the plug part, at least one basically identical compartment, like the compartment on the body of the device mentioned. With it, such a module can be inserted into the battery compartment of the body of the device, and the electric power is supplied via a cylindrical battery or storage cell now inserted in the compartment of the surface-mounted module.
Of course, according to this principle, more than one surface-mounted module can be coupled modularly to the actual body of the device, in practice extending the hook-shaped body of the device.
The compartment, whether it is on the body of the device orxe2x80x94as mentionedxe2x80x94on a surface-mounted module, also has a closed cover basically perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the device, which can preferably be locked, preferably only by means of a tool. This provides a safety device for use with children: without the help of a tool, like a screw driver, for example, the battery or storage battery cannot be taken out of the hearing aid.
According to the modular design principle, the cover mentioned can also preferably be removed from the body of the hearing aid without being destroyed, in such a way that it can be used, for example, after removing said cover on the body of the hearing aid compartment or on the compartment of a surface-mounted module.
It is also common to place a code, for example a color code, on a behind-the-ear hearing aid, which identifies the earxe2x80x94left or rightxe2x80x94for which the device is designed.
So that the parts that must be given a fixed code during manufacturing are not relatively complicated, it is also proposed that the cover mentioned have a left-right ear code, and preferably on part of a lock mounted on the cover and visible from the outside. Thus during manufacturing all covers can be manufactured the same, and only during assembly of a simple lock will, for example, red or blue parts color-coded from the outside be used.
This invention also concerns, according to the wording of Claim 6, a behind-the-ear hearing aid that has a modular design and a hook-shaped curved body, on one end of which there is a compartment where at least two electrical contacts are bare. The plug part of a module can be inserted into the compartment, which module is in turn equipped on the end facing away from the plug preferably with a compartment basically identical to the compartment mentioned on the body of the device. Apart from the question of how and where a battery or storage battery is mounted on the behind-the-ear hearing aid, it is extremely advantageous to provide the compartment mentioned on the hearing aid, with which correspondingly designed surface-mounted modules can optionally be provided on the same basic configuration.
One surface-mounted module in the invention for a hearing aid of the type mentioned above has a plug part preferably basically defining a cylindrical outer surface, and on the module, opposite the plug part, there is a compartment, which is designed for a molded part basically like the plug that can be locked with a preferably removable cover that can preferably be locked, preferably with a tool. The modules preferably used as surface-mounted modules are modules for a wireless communication interface or a plug adapter module to adjust the hearing aid or other acoustic/electric transducer arrangements, a storage battery module, which is usually built bigger than the battery cells usually used, a programming module or a mechanically activated module.